MONTEREY >> Sunday marks the 75th anniversary of a parade celebrated in the Monterey Peninsula Portuguese community marking the Festa do Divino Espirito Santo, or Brotherhoods of the Divine Holy Spirit.

Tessa Avila, vice president of the celebration along with her husband David Avila, said the parade will begin at 10 a.m. Sunday at the Custom House Plaza and continue to San Carlos Cathedral on Church Street. The community then hosts a festival at the Portuguese Hall at 950 Casanova Ave.

Tessa Avila said a free lunch of traditional “sopas” (stewed meat) will be served, along with desserts and seafood available for purchase. There is an auction and a dance with music by Portuguese favorite Chico Avila.

Historically the parade has featured “queens” from between 80 and 100 different towns from Marin County to San Diego. Accompanying the queens are flag carriers and marching bands.

The Festa honors Queen Isabella of Portugal who was born in 1271 and became a beloved figure in Portuguese Catholic celebrations. The queen is said to have rolled bread into an apron and distributed it to the hungry. She also established orphanages, institutions for the sick, housing for the homeless and a convent for nuns. It is said by the Church of St. Isabella that the queen cared for abandoned babies and even took care of her husband’s children by other women.

The crowning of queens is symbolic of Queen Isabel placing her crown on a poor girl’s head as a token of humility and love, and is fulfillment of her promises to the Holy Spirit of feeding the starving people of Portugal, Avila explained.

The Festa in Monterey, which is both an organization and festival, was originated by Portuguese immigrants back in 1944. The immigrants left the Azores archipelago and came to America to work on dairy ranches, fishing boats and canneries, Avila said.

The first Festa was held at the Monterey County Fairgrounds and then in 1949 it was moved to the newly constructed Portuguese Hall. Group members purchased 11 acres at the top of Casanova Street in Monterey for their new hall.

Dennis L. Taylor has reported on diverse issues for three decades in the San Francisco and Monterey bay areas, including 10 years in the Silicon Valley business press covering venture capital and technology investments.